Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

‘Link… I’m home!’
Zelda’s eyes were full of tears as she looked at him, smiling wider than she ever had.

Link stared at her for a moment, before lunging forwards and clinging to her so tightly she thought her ribs would surely crack.

Zelda was too startled to speak, and just mutely hugged him back, gently stroking his hair.
She could feel a wet spot on her dress from his tears, as he clung to her.

It was as if he was terrified she would vanish all over again.

Link was shaking violently, pressing his face into her neck as he clung to her. She could feel his heart beating erratically against her chest.

‘Link..’
She said his name gently, in the same sort of tone you would use with a wounded animal.
‘It’s oka-‘

‘I woke up and you were gone.’
He whispered.
‘All over again.’

Zelda tightened her hold on him.
‘I’m sorry.’

Link shook his head and released her, but still made a point of never quite letting her go.

‘Don’t apologise. It’s not your fault.’

If it wasn’t obvious before, seeing his tear streaked face now was like a punch to the gut.

‘You’ve.. been through hell all over again.’
He bowed his head, almost looking like a dejected puppy.

‘And I wasn’t able to protect you.’

Zelda felt a little sick at that.
She grabbed his face, and shook him slightly.
‘Don’t be an idiot! Look, I’m fine now, aren’t I?’

When he didn’t respond for a few moments, Zelda sighed, and let him go.

‘We should head to lookout landing… Purah is probably worried sick about me…’
She mumbled, getting to her feet.

She almost instantly stumbled, and would have fallen over again, had Link not been there to grab her.
Like always.

‘Sorry.. I guess my body was used to not having to use my legs…’
She laughed awkwardly.

Link nodded, and silently scooped her up into his arms.

‘W-w-What are you doing!? If Purah sees-!’

‘I’ll put you down before we get there, then.’
He replied

‘But what if we bump into other citizens!? What will they think-!’

Link shushed her.
‘I need to.’
He muttered.
She nodded, relenting.
It was the least she could offer him.

Link didn’t seem to get tired, not even after what felt like hours of walking.
Zelda had even managed to doze off in his arms. She didn’t even realise until when he gently shook her awake.

‘We’re close to lookout landing.’
He said, bluntly.

Zelda nodded, and he set her down on her feet.

‘Sorry Link- could I trouble you for your shoulder?’

He nodded, and reached out an arm for her to steady herself on.
As they approached, they watched the guards stationed at the gates stare at them in shock, before rushing inside- presumably to alert Purah.

This assumption was confirmed almost instantly, as the ‘young’ woman in question came barrelling out of the gates, and practically leaped at the two.

‘Princess Zelda!’
She shrieked, throwing her arms around her.
‘You’re okay! Oh thank Hylia! I don’t know what I would have done… what I would have told everyone…!’

She babbled on for awhile, clinging to Zelda while Link just kind of stood to attention.

‘…I’m just so glad you’re safe!’
She finished.

Zelda smiled.
‘Thank you, Purah. I’m glad you and the others are alright.’

Purah ushered the two inside of the gates, where they were bombarded with questions, joyful cheers and even hugs (and the occasional high-five directed at Link.)
Link felt so disconnected from it all. Like he was in a dream. He couldn’t even hear what they were saying. His brain was simply tuning them out.
The only think keeping him grounded was the feeling of Zelda’s hand in his own.

He didn’t notice as they were hurried into the bunker, he didn’t notice when they were offered clean clothes, and he didn’t notice when food was on his plate.

What DID end up catching his attention, was a guard stating that he would have to let go of the Princess for a moment.

THAT snapped him out of his daze.

Link shook his head, gripping Zelda’s hand tighter.

The guard groaned.
‘She has to change into clean clothes AND she has to take a bath- plus, don’t tell me you expected to just share a bed with the Princess of Hyrule?’

He couldn’t quite stop himself from muttering;
‘Wouldn’t be the first time.’

The guard went beet red.

‘You’re lucky the Princess is sleeping right now, and that I would rather not wake her up.’
Link stated, bluntly.

Purah poked her head in from the entrance to the bunker.

‘Don’t be stupid Link- she DOES need a bath. You can let go for five minutes.’

The compromise ended up being that he was allowed to stand outside the door, armed to the teeth, while Zelda bathed.

She chuckled at him as she exited the bathroom, patting him on the back and thanking him for his help.

It was then that he realised he was also expected to bathe.

After making Purah pinkie promise to not let the Princess out of her sight, he relented and went into the bathroom.

It was practically a bathe-and-get-dressed speedrun.
He was in and out in under five minutes.

After he had been taken a moment, Link stepped out of the bathroom and made a beeline to Zelda.

She was sitting on the end of a small twin bed, fluffing up the pillows while chatting with Purah.

‘Oh it would be wonderful to see Paya agai- oh! Welcome back Link.’
She smiled.

‘I was just talking about how I wanted to go see everyone again- since, for me, I haven’t seen them for over ten thousand years!’

Link nodded mutely, and Purah stood up.
‘It’s been great chatting with you Princess, but I’ve got some stuff to do. I guess I’ll swap over guard duty to my silent knight of a colleague.’

She winked, and scurried off.

Zelda looked up at Link, smiling.

‘You look exhausted.’
She said, matter-of-factly.

He nodded, still silent.

Zelda patted the place next to her on the bed, and Link sat down almost instantly.

She laughed.
‘You can sleep, you know that right?’

He shook his head, frowning, to silently tell her he wouldn’t dare sleep at this point.
Zelda rolled her eyes, and pressed her hand against his left shoulder.

Before he could ask what the heck she was doing, she pulled him down so that his head rested on her lap.

‘You can go to sleep. This way, if I move, you’ll know right away.’
It really sounded like she was consoling a child at this point.

Link looked up at her, eyebrows knitted together in a frown, as he opened his mouth to protest.
Zelda interrupted him before he could even speak.

‘No ifs, no ands, no buts and definitely no what ifs.’
She told him, sternly, in the same voice she tended to use when telling the children of Hateno village not to touch the pot while Link was cooking.

It was a firm, but still caring voice.
Not one he had the energy to argue with.

In fact, the moment he laid his head down… he didn’t seem to have any energy left at all.
It was as if all the sleepless nights and exhausting battles all caught up to him in that moment- and, as hard as he fought it, his eyelids were getting unbearably heavy.

‘Zelda-‘
He croaked.

‘Shh.’

She patted him on the head, and began combing through his hair with her fingers.
‘I’m right here, okay? I’ll be fine.’

Link didn’t have the strength to retort.
He was vaguely aware of her humming a tune as he drifted off, still fighting in vain to stay awake…

Chapter Text

‘Purah, should I stir clockwise or counter-clockwise?’

‘Doesn’t matter.’

‘Should I chop sideways or top-down?’

‘…Doesn’t matter.’

‘Should I-!’

Purah slammed down her spoon.

‘Goddess almighty!’
She exclaimed.
‘If I’d have known you’d be like this, I would have woken Link up!’

She scowled.
Zelda smiled awkwardly.

‘Sorry Purah.. I just.. I want to make something nice for him. He’s always cooking the meals, so I wanted to make him a good breakfast for once. I just didn’t want to mess it up.’

Purah’s gaze softened, and she patted the princess on her shoulder reassuringly.

‘It’s alright. Knowing him, he’d accept whatever you made with a smile. Even if it was burned to a crisp and covered in slime.’

Zelda laughed.
‘You think? He’s so precise when he’s cooking. I always assumed he’d have a heart attack if I even tried to improvise with one of his recipes.’

‘If it was anyone else, he absolutely would. But if it’s YOU-‘

She have Zelda a playful punch on the arm.

‘-he’d praise you to high heavens for being so innovative and creative.’

Zelda opened her mouth to respond, but suddenly felt someone’s head press into her upper back.

‘Zelda.’

Link sounded mildly annoyed.

‘Oh! Good morning! Sorry, breakfast isn’t quite ready yet. Did you sleep well-?’
He cut her off.

‘It wasn’t very nice, you know.’

Link’s voice was muffled, seeing as his face was buried in her upper back. Even so, she could hear the irritation in his tone.

‘What wasn’t very nice?’

‘I woke up and you weren’t there.’

Purah rolled her eyes at him, and muttered something about him being way too clingy.

Zelda, however, felt a nasty pit of guilt settle in her stomach.

‘Oh Link- I’m so sorry…’
He shook his head slightly..

‘S’okay. Just wasn’t a great feeling.’

She still felt awful.

Purah interrupted the awkward silence by grabbing
Link by the shoulder and yanking him backwards.

‘Don’t you know not to distract a lady while she’s cooking?’

He stared at her, blankly.

‘Oh goddess, not the silent knight act all over again.’
She rolled her eyes dramatically.

‘Princess. Zelda. Is. Cooking. Breakfast. Be. A. Gentleman. And. Sit. Down.’

Purah spoke slowly, like she was speaking to a child who didn’t understand Hylian.

‘…’

He sat down nonetheless.

Zelda laughed.
‘Don’t be mean Purah, he just woke up.’

Purah shrugged, and stretched out her arms in front of her.

‘A-NY-WAY. You got any plans for the day? You might wanna head over to Hateno or something- I hear the residents are still losing their minds over your disappearance. Plus… there’s been some developments in that whole mayoral debacle.’

She continued rambling as she grabbed her backpack and started heading over to the door.

‘I’ll best be off now, lots to do-‘

‘Don’t you want any breakfast?’
Zelda interrupted, holding out her ladle, which was full of… something that vaguely resembled soup.

‘Uh- no I’m good. Don’t wanna get food poisoning.’
She winked, waved, and sprinted out of the door.

‘Oh..’

Zelda deflated ever so slightly.

Before she could even say another word, Link was beside her, filling up a bowl of her concoction.

She couldn’t even stop him or mention it wasn’t finished before he downed the whole thing.

Zelda watched nervously, but he simply swallowed and gave her a thumbs up.

‘Good soup. Needs salt, though.’

She burst out laughing, dropping her ladle into the pot, and grabbing the countertop for support.

Link stared at her, a little confused, but reached for a salt container all the same.

She smacked his hand away.

‘I think Purah’s right… I couldn’t find all the ingredients from your recipe so I… improvised.’

She said, sheepishly, gesturing to a pile of Keese eyeballs laying in the sink.

Link stared at them, before nodding.
‘Creative. Well done.’

Zelda chuckled.
Purah was absolutely correct.

‘So..’
She said, pouring her invention down the sink.

‘Should we head to Hateno? That’s what Purah suggested, right?’

Link nodded, watching the ‘soup’ slide its way down the drain, before he picked up his sword, and motioned towards the door.

‘Have you got everything?’

‘Yep! Let’s go!’

After they cleared away the remains of what could hardly be called breakfast, Zelda made to climb the ladder- but Link put a hand on her arm, shaking his head.

‘I’ll go first.’

She nodded.
He most likely wanted to check the outside for danger first.

It was a good thing the climb took a few moments- that way, Zelda wouldn’t be able to tell that Link was awkwardly avoiding looking down at her.

It would have been incredibly awkward to climb up after the princess.

Because it would have been incredibly obvious that he was looking everywhere but UP.

Zelda popped out of the bunker moments later, dusting off her clothes.

‘Are we walking or…?’

Link’s short, sharp whistle answered her question. As did the horse trotting over to greet them.

Zelda was embarrassingly clumsy when it came to getting on- she had to keep reminding herself that she hadn’t actually been in a human’s body for over ten thousand years, and that it was only natural to struggle with all these things that were once second nature to her.

Such as not falling off a horse.

After a few moments of silence as the horse trotted along, Link silently guiding it through the countryside, and Zelda wobbling around and having more than a few close calls, the horse slowed to a halt.

‘Hold on to me if you’re struggling.’
He said, bluntly.

Zelda flushed with embarrassment.
Was it really that obvious?

‘N-no I’m fine, I just need to get used to it again-‘

‘Nope, I can’t have you falling off.’

‘Seriously, I’ll be okay!’

‘Hold on.’

‘It’s not that big of a deal-‘

‘Princess.’

Link’s voice was suddenly very stern.
‘For my own peace of mind, please hold on.’

Oops.
She’d forgotten that her long absence had not only affected herself.

‘Sorry.’

‘No need. Just.. please do it, Princess.’

Zelda complied, but felt herself deflate further at the honorific.

It felt like they’d regressed again.
Before they had found Ganondorf underground, and before everything had gone insane all over again, they’d been making a lot of progress.

It was the second time they’d been making progress, actually.

Before the calamity, Link had finally started to open up a little.
Of course, she was also in need of having her shell cracked a little, but she was finally being a little nicer to him herself.

And then the calamity happened.
Zelda kept her progress, Link reset.

And again, they were back at square one. Or maybe even worse.

Link barely remembered her, and even admitted himself that he only had a few, disconnected and disjointed memories that told him what had happened.

He didn’t remember all their long talks- or rather, her talking, him listening.

But they were getting better at being honest with each other.

Dropping the stupid honorifics was a first step towards seeing each other as people, rather than Zelda seeing Link as an inconvenience, and Link seeing Zelda as an assignment.

When he lost his memories, he started calling her ‘Princess’ again.
At first, she assumed it was because there were others around.

Then it kept happening.

All over again, they worked on being open.

And they were getting better.

And then they found that stupid man underground.

This time, Link hadn’t lost his memories, but his state of mind seemingly shot back to how it had been when he had to find and save her the first time.

Assignment.

A Princess and a Knight.

She was snapped out of her thoughts by a squeal.

‘MISS ZELDA!!’

All worries had to be forgotten, and Zelda put on her best face.

And so they went through Hateno village, chatting with the villagers, reassuring them, and reintegrating Zelda back into the community.

By the time night had fallen, the two were exhausted.

It was difficult to escape the excited mob, but somehow, they managed to get home.

The sign proclaiming ‘Zelda’s house’ was just as pristine as ever- clearly, the villagers had been keeping it clean.

She always felt bad about taking Link’s house- but he had insisted.

Zelda flicked on the lights, and Link locked the door, before scanning the home for any signs of danger or potential intruders.

Once he was satisfied, he gave her a quick thumbs up.

‘I’ll take the floor.’

He said, in a tone that told her this was not something to protest.

How cliche.

Zelda sighed.
She didn’t have the energy to argue, and simply nodded, climbing the stairs and flopping onto the mattress.

‘Can you-‘

Link seemingly read her mind.
He had already pulled the spare mattress over, so that it lay directly beside the bed, albeit lower, due to it being on the floor.

She smiled.
Always so considerate.

‘…Thank you.’

‘No problem.’

Chapter Text

‘…’

He was definitely awake.

Zelda rolled over, and let her hand slide over the edge of the mattress, nudging Link slightly.

He opened his eyes, and took her hand in his- clearly without thinking it through first.

It took him a few seconds to realise what he had just done. When it did finally sink in, Link let out a whispered yelp, and let her go, rolling over so that he was facing away from the Princess.

Zelda laughed softly.

‘You okay?’

He let out a loud, fake snore.

‘Link.’

‘…’

‘Link.’

‘….zzzzzz?’

She chuckled, and grabbed him by the shoulder to turn him back over.

‘What is it, Princess?’

He asked, bluntly.
Zelda flicked on the lamp, and a soft glow filled the room.

‘I can’t sleep.’
She muttered.

Link paused, before propping himself up on his elbows, and looking up at her.

‘How can I help?’

He seemed so earnest, it was kind of adorable.
Purah had a point- she always compared him to a puppy. Although she never meant it endearingly- it was usually said to annoy him.

‘Can you come up here? Please..?’

He looked confused, eyes searching her face for any hint of something being out of place.

‘…okay…’

She silently cursed herself.
She should have worded that better.

In all honesty, she was terrified.
From her point of view, she’d been fast asleep for ten thousand years.
What if this was… just part of that dream.

She was so, so scared of waking up and finding that she was a dragon all over again.

Or even worse.
Not waking up at all. Staying in the dream, just as she had done for over ten thousand years.

Link seemed to have noticed.

She felt a weight at the end of the bed, and looked up to find him sitting down, looking at her in concern.

‘What’s wrong, Princess?’

She shifted around, uncomfortably.

‘I- what if this is all a dream?’
She blurted out.

He looked slightly shocked, but managed to hide it well.

‘What do you mean?’

‘Well-‘

It all came tumbling out.
The fear, the uncertainty- even the sheer embarrassment of struggling to use her own body.

She was almost in tears by the end.
Link listened in silence, like he always had.

When she finally finished, Zelda let out a shaky sigh.
‘I’m just so scared that… I’ll wake up and I’ll be all alone again.’

She whispered, squeezing her eyes shut as tightly as she could.

She suddenly felt a hand grip one of her own, and opened her eyes to find that Link had scooted closer, and was holding her hand firmly.

‘Not again.’

He said.

‘Huh?’

‘Never. I’ll never ever leave you alone like that again, Princess.’

Link said, earnestly, squeezing her hand reassuringly.

Zelda wiped her eyes.

‘I know.’

They sat like that for what felt like hours, silent, just holding each other.

‘Link.’
Zelda murmured.

He looked over at her, his expression impossible to read.

‘Can you come closer for a second?’

Link nodded, and scooted closer once again.

‘This good?’

Zelda shook her head.
‘C-closer please.’

He paused.
Despite how collected he looked on the outside, Link was screaming internally.

He had to remain professional.
This was ZELDA, after all.
The Princess of Hyrule.

And he was just a knight.

He had to remember that.

‘..Link?’

He shook his head slightly, in an attempt to clear his thoughts.

‘Sorry.’
He shuffled closer once again.

‘Closer.’
Her voice was barely above a whisper.

She didn’t know what she was doing, or what her plan even was.

It was like she was on autopilot.

Even so, Link complied.
Like he always did.

This made Zelda feel a little guilty.
Like she was taking advantage of his loyalty.

At this point, their noses were practically touching, Link desperately trying to look anywhere but at her mouth.
Or her eyes.
Or her hair.
Or her chest.

Or at Zelda at all.

‘Closer.’

Link hesitated.

‘Princess-‘

‘Please.’

He sighed, voice shaky for the first time in a long, long time.

‘Princess, I can’t just-‘

Zelda got closer instead.

He could feel her breath on his cheek.

Finally, Link looked at her.
Upon meeting his gaze, Zelda closed her eyes, silently pleading.

Every inch of his being was telling him to go for it, but what little ounce of self control he had left screamed at him to back away, apologise, and go back to sleep.

Zelda tugged at his shirt ever so slightly, and all that resolve crumbled in an instant.

When he finally kissed her, it was quick, and soft, and nervous.

It lasted less than a second, and he looked at her anxiously, scanning her face for any hint of disgust or anger.

Zelda took note of this, and quickly kissed him back.

This one was longer.
It was far, far less soft.

And all of the nervousness was practically thrown out the window.

Zelda tugged at him gently, trying to pull him closer, her eyelids fluttering as she fought the urge to open her eyes- just to see what he looked like. See if he seemed happy.

Link somehow managed to resist, still trying desperately to keep himself under control, and staying firmly where he was.

Zelda seemed to notice his reluctance to take any initiative, but also his lack of proper resistance.
She slowly started inching herself backwards, letting go of the kiss, but not ever getting far enough away that he would think she wasn’t interested.

He remained anchored to his spot, but pressed his head forwards to find her lips once again, squeezing her hand lightly.

Internally, he was screaming at himself.

He was getting way too greedy- just this morning, he’d been happy just eating breakfast with the Princess, content to simply be her attendant or her friend.

Yet now he just kept wanting more and more- but he HAD to control himself.
Any possibility of Zelda becoming upset with him… had to be avoided at all costs.

Despite all this, he wanted so badly to go further.
He wanted to believe that, maybe, the way she kissed him and tugged at his hand meant that Zelda wanted that too.

But he would never do anything to her without express permission.
At least… that’s what he kept telling himself.

Zelda’s tongue grazed his bottom lip, and he could feel his resolve begin to shatter.

Link grabbed a fistful of the sheets, determined to keep himself under control, and to stay PUT.
Letting out a low, involuntary, and frankly embarrassing groan, he pulled back slightly, placing his free hand on the top of Zelda’s head, in an attempt to halt her.

‘…Link?’

His breathing was shaky, and he felt like if she said another word, he would break.

‘You have… you have to tell me.’
He pleaded, in a trembling whisper.

‘You have to tell me what you want… please…’

Zelda’s breath hitched.
Even after everything, he was STILL asking permission.

‘…Come here.’
She breathed, her own voice beginning to shake with anticipation.

She scooted backwards, and awkwardly opened her arms, in a silent invitation.
‘Please…?’

Link nodded, and shuffled over, hesitantly sliding into her arms.
Zelda took a deep breath, before opening her knees, and giving his hand another gentle tug.

‘Closer.’

He did as he was asked, awkwardly positioning his body between her legs.

If there had been any possible way either of them could misinterpret the situation, it was gone now.

Link looked down at the Princess, his body lightly hovering over her own, his breathing ragged.
Zelda couldn’t meet his gaze.
Maybe it had just sunk in what she was doing, or maybe she could tell he was trying his best not to look at any indecent parts of her body.
Which was incredibly embarrassing.

‘…can I kiss you?’

His question laid in the air, the atmosphere thick with tension.
‘…obviously.’
Zelda replied, still refusing to look up at him.

Link placed a firm, reassuring hand on her own, before releasing it, and cupping her cheek lightly, gently moving her head gaze over to look at him.

His cheeks were flaming red, and, in a rather cute way, so were the tips of his ears.

When their lips met again, it was clear something was different.
This was far more earnest, and far, far more needy.
Zelda would let out little gasps every time they would break away, trying to catch her breath, but he would chase the kiss, only giving themselves a few brief seconds to come up for air, before it would begin again.

Link’s conscience was still there, but it was so faint he could barely hear it.
Now, every inch of him just wanted to get as close as possible to Zelda.

But he had to hold back for just a little longer.
He pulled away, and placed both his hands on her shoulders.

‘Princess.’
He said, seriously.

Zelda nodded, a look of concern flashing briefly across her features.

‘What is this?’

‘Huh?’

He sighed, and let go of her shoulders, hanging his head slightly.
‘I mean- this is… I’m concerned that I might… get the wrong idea about this.’

Link muttered, staring at the ground.

‘What do you mean?’

‘Why are you doing this with me? Is it just because I’m here? Is it becau-‘

‘I love you.’

Link’s head snapped up, eyes wide with shock.
‘Excuse me?’

Zelda had a similar reaction.
She slapped a hand over her mouth, and rolled over to hide her reddening face.

‘Uh- I love you!’
She squeaked.
‘That’s why. That’s the reason. So if you could… uh…’

She peeked at him through her fingers.
‘Can you just keep up what you were doing before? Pretty please?’

Zelda mumbled, returning her hands to her face in utter embarrassment.
Goddess, the idiot really went and made her say it.

She felt the weight shift on the mattress, and felt Link’s breath graze the skin of her neck.

‘Why?’
He breathed.

‘Sorry?’

She felt him plant a kiss just below her ear, causing a light shiver to run down her body.

‘Why do you love me?’
He asked, earnestly, cupping her cheek so that she would look at him.

‘Eh!? Can we talk about that a-another time?’
She asked, her face getting redder by the second.

‘Sure.’
Link relented, pressing his face into her neck.

‘I love you too.’
Zelda let out a little noise- but whether it was from his confession, or from the sensation of him speaking into the crook of her neck, was unclear.

The room slowly filled with the quiet, laboured breathing of the Princess, along with the slight noises she would make as Link nipped at her neck, switching between kissing, licking and sucking at a slow, gentle pace, giving her time to adjust to each sensation.

His kisses trailed downwards, stopping at the collar of her shirt.

He glanced up at the Princess, whose eyes were tightly shut as she let out shaky breaths.

‘May I?’

Zelda opened her eyes, taking in the scene before her.

Link’s face was flushed as he looked down at her through half lidded eyes, his breathing laboured.
His hand was hovering above the hem of her shirt.

She nodded.

Within seconds, her shirt was discarded on the floor below them.

She wanted to tell Link not to stare, but seeing his expression of utter amazement at the mere sight of her bra was almost too adorable.

Almost.

‘Link-‘
She started, but he cut her off.

‘I’m going to be completely honest- I have no idea how to take that off.’
He admitted, awkwardly.

‘And I’ve heard that those are notoriously difficult to remove.’

Zelda let out a giggle, reaching behind to undo the clasp, and quickly removing it.

Despite this, she quickly covered her chest with her arms, irrationally embarrassed by the idea of Link seeing her bare breasts.

He placed a hand on her wrist, looking at her face for permission.

She nodded, and squeezed her eyes shut, allowing him to gently remove her arms.

She could feel his fingertips lightly graze her ribs, inching upwards, before he hesitantly cupped her left breast in his hand.

Zelda inhaled sharply. She held her breath, waiting, her body tingling a little with the anticipation.

She managed to relax slightly, letting him lean further into her, while his right hand slid down her body, coming to rest on her hip.

Once Zelda had properly relaxed into his arms, Link brushed his thumb over her left nipple, drawing out a small squeak from the Princess, whose eyes snapped shut reflectively.

‘Sorry. Did that hurt?’
Link asked, in a voice that was thick with concern.

Zelda shook her head, propping herself up on her elbows so that she was facing him properly.

‘Felt good.’
She mumbled.

Link nodded, leaning in to kiss her again, and continued to play with her breasts, trailing what felt like hundreds of light, feathery kisses all down her neck, collarbone, and-

Zelda let out a sharp gasp as she felt his mouth on her nipple.

Before he could even ask, she squeaked out;
‘Feels good. Don’t- don’t stop.’

Link happily complied, trying to find a rhythm that resulted in the most pleasurable noises from the Princess.

As he searched, Zelda clumsily reached downwards, trying to awkwardly slide off his shorts.

After a rather embarrassingly long few moments, she succeeded, and gingerly pulled out his erection.

He shivered at her touch, pausing what he was doing to take a deep, shaky breath.

‘Princess-‘
She shushed him, placing a light kiss on the top of his head.

‘Let- let me make you feel good too.’
She asked, trying to emulate the romance novels she kept hidden under her mattress.

Link nodded, bowing his head to continue with the attention he was paying to her chest.

Zelda nervously wrapped a hand around his arousal, earning a quiet groan from Link.
She smiled to herself, somewhat proud of the effect she managed to have on him.

She awkwardly experimented with moving her hands up and down, trying to find the movement that earned her the most reactions, stroking him slowly and gently.

Link stopped what he was doing, and simply pressed his head into her shoulder, breathing heavily.

‘Princess-‘

Zelda reached up her spare hand to stroke his hair, placing a gentle kiss on the top of his head, letting out a low hum to acknowledge her title.

She began to speed up her movements, even experimenting with rubbing the tip slightly, drawing out several low groans and gasps from him.

It was… kind of adorable, watching him come undone in her hand, and knowing that it was thanks to her.

Before she could push him over the edge, however, Link placed a hand on top of her own, and slowly pulled it away.

‘H-hold it.’
He panted into her shoulder, taking a few moments to recollect himself.

‘I don’t want to. Not yet.’

Zelda nodded, pulling away slightly.
Before she could get very far, he had wrapped his arms around her, and was kissing her all over again, as his fingers trailed down her body, coming to a stop at the waistband of her pyjama shorts.

‘…can I?’
He whispered.

Zelda was far, far too tense to give a verbal response, and simply nodded, squeezing his hand in reassurance.

Link’s fingers hooked into her underwear, sliding it off along with her shorts, as Zelda lifted her hips slightly to make the job easier.

Confident that Zelda’s actions thus far would serve as permission to go further, Link bent down and pressed a kiss into her inner thigh.

He heard a squeak, and looked up to see the Princess had her arm laying over her face, which was flaming red.

She was panting slightly, but didn’t tell him no.

Link smiled softly.
She honestly had no idea what she did to him.

His fingers traced up the inside of her thighs, as his mouth peppered kisses along the way, coming to rest mere inches away from her folds.

Zelda let out a whine when he finally touched her, fingers experimentally sliding along her slit.
He teased her entrance, watching her face as she shuddered with each touch.

He felt her leg twitch slightly as his thumb brushed over her clit, and heard a sharp gasp from above him.

Link squeezed her hand, before slowly pressing a finger into her entrance, earning a low moan from the Princess.

Her breathing became more laboured as he slowly pressed his fingers in and out, trailing kisses along her thighs and hips, as he muttered about how beautiful she looked, sliding a second finger inside of her.

‘L-link..!’
Zelda squeaked, her body shuddering ever so slightly.

‘Hm?’

She didn’t respond, just tightened her grip on his hand, and gripped the pillow behind her head, eyes shut tight, letting out little mewls and gasps as his fingers continued to pump in and out of her.

As he kissed his way up her thighs, Link’s mouth found its way to her clit, flicking it with his tongue.

Zelda slapped a hand over her mouth, barely stifling a sharp yelp.

Tears prickled at her eyes at the sudden, overwhelming sensation, and she could feel a strange warmth pool towards the area where he had touched her.

Link seemed pleased with her reaction, as he began to swirl his tongue around the little bud, rapidly pushing the Princess towards her climax, all while continuing to pump his fingers inside of her.
He glanced up to see her face, and found that she was gripping the sheets so tightly that her knuckles were white, eyes squeezed shut, her face bright red and shiny with sweat.

She was so beautiful.

Zelda felt like she was unraveling, her climax fast approaching, and she cried out his name reaching out a hand to tangle in his hair as she sobbed Link’s name, almost pleading, as her orgasm hit her.

Link squeezed her hand, continuing to finger her through it, as she slowly came down from her high.

As she panted, he slowly removed his fingers, and she looked up to see him nonchalantly licking her off of his hand.

The sight was so incredibly erotic that Zelda ended up closing her eyes again.
‘You’re so beautiful.’

Link muttered, leaning back down to wrap his arms around her, seemingly content with all they had just done.

But Zelda knew he wasn’t- not quite.
Neither was she.

‘Link?’
She breathed.

He turned his head to face her, kissing her below her ear.
‘Hm?’

‘C-can we um… can you-‘
She felt her face heating up again- there was no way to say this without sounding horribly dirty.

‘Can you put it in…inside?’
She whispered.

Link opened his eyes to look at her.
‘Are you sure?’

He asked, sounding nervous all over again.

‘Y-yeah… is that okay?’

Link nodded, sitting back up, and slowly positioning himself back between her legs.

‘I have no idea… what I’m doing.’
He murmured, sheepishly.

Zelda giggled.
‘Me neither.’

She heard him breathe a slight sigh of relief, before he paused.

‘Um- I don’t have a… you know..’

Zelda flushed, but guided his hand towards her bedside table.

‘I have some in there. D-don’t get the wrong idea though… the mayor’s wife left them there… she thought we were… when we first moved in-‘

Link nodded, and a few moments later, she heard the sound of a wrapper opening.

Zelda reflexively closed her eyes, her breath hitching as she felt him rub against her entrance.

‘Are you sure?’
He asked, again, leaning down so that his face was inches away from her own.

‘P-positive.’

Link laced their fingers together, kissing her softly, as if he was afraid she would break.

‘…I love you.’

Before Zelda could tell him the same, she felt her slit parting for him.
He entered her slowly, carefully, all the while kissing her everywhere that was in reach.

As he inched in, Zelda’s breathing became heavier, and her grip on his hand tightened.
The slight discomfort increased the further he went, until she finally felt his hips meet her own, as he was fully sheathed inside of her.

‘You.. okay…?’
He panted, staying still as if it took every ounce of his willpower.

‘Give me… a moment..’
Zelda replied, her breathing heavy and laboured.
He complied, simply kissing her again, allowing her to get used to the feeling of him inside of her.

Slowly, the discomfort vanished, and was replaced with a wonderful feeling that ached for more.

‘Okay.. y-you can move now…’

She breathed.
Link slowly slid out, kissing her forehead as he did so, before pushing his way back in, pressing against something deep inside of her.

They both let out low moans of pleasure, and he glanced down at her, silently asking for permission to do it again.

Zelda nodded, closing her eyes tightly as he slid in and out of her, hitting that same spot almost every time.
He thrusted in and out, eventually finding a rhythm that suited them both, one that earned him the most noises from the Princess.

Zelda reached up to hide her face in her hands, but Link gingerly gripped her wrists, shaking his head.

‘Please.. I need… I need to see you…’
He panted, gently pressing both of her hands against the sheets, beneath his own.

He leaned down, kissing her deeply, as his thrusts got faster, drawing out more gasps.
Link hooked an arm around her hips, lifting her up slightly, which caused him to hit a spot that felt better than anything else.

‘L-Link..!
Zelda squealed, yelping his name out as she felt another impending orgasm.

Link gritted his teeth, panting heavily, and it was clear he was also close.

His thrusts started losing any sort of rhythm, as he just jolted in and out faster and faster, hitting that spot each and every time, as he dragging out another climax from the Princess.

‘Zelda..!’

He groaned.
Link came very quickly after her, hugging her tightly as he rode out his high.

As they both panted and recovered, he seemed to realise his mistake.
But Zelda looked so, so happy.

‘You.. called me Zelda again.’
She smiled.

Link chose not to acknowledge that.
This was a conversation they could have another time.

Instead, he simply laid down on top of her, and kissed her again.

‘I love you.’